Writing a murder mystery book is akin to piecing a puzzle as every factor has to blend in to present a nice and interesting cover. The readers of so-called whodunit novels are quite perceptive and indulge such works with expectation of some folds, diversity and most importantly, a twist in the normal storyline. To perfectly engage readers with a well-crafted murder mystery, you will require more than just the crime and your killer investigator. The reader would also need drama, thrills, and a series of hints that would keep people at the edge of their seats right to the end.
In this article, you will see the process of developing a murder mystery. It begins with outlining the crime, incorporating red herrings, and ultimately embellishing the pages with a twist that the readers can never foresee yet will be delighted with when it happens.
The Crime: Setting the Stage for Your Story
Murder mysteries do not just pop out of thin air. There is a central crime, which is the murder, and this forms the backbone of the entire storyline. It is this crime that will propel your plot and give your characters, who are perhaps your main star or detective, an ideal problem to solve.
Choose the Right Victim
Your victim is not merely a function in your novel but is an important character. Writing a good whodunnit is probably less about the killer and more about the victim. Think about what made this person such an important target. Was it an act of jealousy, vendetta, or some other threat?
Some crucial points to consider in this context are:
- How did the power imbalance exist beneath?
- Who were the victims that were accepted as conspiracy victims? What horrible truth did they harbor that forced someone to kill them?
- What are the repercussions of such a death on the surroundings including the – family, friends or even the killer themselves?
When telling a story, decide on the kind of character who will be a victim. The more layers, the more the secrets, the more enemies, the more complicated some relationships, the more tasks for the detective.
The Means, Motive, and Opportunity
For every murder mystery three things are held in common: means, motive and opportunity. These are considered as the bedrock of every well syntagmatic murder mystery.
- Means: How was the murder perpetrated? For example, was it stabbing or poison or gun? It is possible to get clues about a murderer through the method or way of killing.
- Motive: What reason did the killer have for the murder? The motive isn’t the hardest part to figure out, but it is typically well concealed by the killer’s mental makeup.
- Opportunity: Did the entity that was the killer have the means or the opportunity to commit the offense? It would be extremely helpful for your detective to compile a chronology of all of the events to help in determining who was likely to have been around during the murder.
In any well-written mystery it is usually the motivation which takes the longest to surface, as it is often covered by a secret.
Building Suspense: Structure and Pacing
There is no question that every good murder mystery must involve some suspicion or tension for this is its core. As well as the outline, in any mystery, the plot and the pace are usually planned out to the minute.
Start with a Strong Hook
The opening of your murder mystery casings should catch the reader’s attention from the first sentence. Very frequently, murder mysteries are kicked off the moment the crime is committed or at a very shocking event the reader is introduced to. This hook should make the reader wonder and therefore pull their interest into this particular world.
Strong hooks such as the following provide a general overview:
- A seemingly impossible location to expect finds a corpse.
- A ‘cold’ call warning someone is going to be murdered shortly.
- A main character who finds a dead body and soon becomes embroiled in a detective story.
Layer Your Clues
One of the most exciting activities (both reading and writing) is solving the murder mystery puzzle. In your case, writer’s, it is not enough to simply place the clues on certain pages, which is not a crime. Your job is to construct these clues in a strategic way throughout the storyline, so the readers get just the necessary information to feel challenged and yet tip off the readers too much too fast.
The Art of Misdirection: This is another technique used to aid the creation of tension throughout the story. Red herrings are a distortion and switch which deceive a sufficient amount of water. In other words, false clues that seem important, but serve no purpose in advancing the plot are known as tomatoes.
The same strategies are employed in every instance and do employ anxiety. There is nothing and nowhere for anything. All the psychological manipulations and techniques used in building suspense and tension within each facet of redeeming relationships.
Control the Pacing
Pacing is something that should be paid careful attention to in the murder mystery genre. If the plot moves too fast, it is possible that readers might miss the necessary details. On the other hand, the plot moving too slowly might make the reader lose interest in the story altogether. You want to establish a pace that lets out moments of build-up, discovery as well as most importantly, suspense.
Slow burns vs. Quick Revelations: Different types of mysteries require different pacing, some might require a slow performance where tension gradually increases until the grand truth is revealed. Others however may seize all the glory in explosive revelations, short and shocking, that bedeck the entirety of the storyline. Consider what works finest for your specific mystery.
Character Development: Creating Your Detective and Suspects
Your characters are the epitome of what your murder mystery is all about. A fascinating lonely detective and a bunch of possible culprits are sure to make a good detective story.
The Detective: Your Story’s Hero
Your detective (amateur or professional) happens to be the one through whom readers get to unravel the mystery. They are the ones who gather all the clues, do interviews with suspects and lastly solve the mystery.
Traits of a Great Detective:
- Curiosity: Being a detective is about investigating and inquiring perseverance and tenacity in the quest of the truth is key.
- Intelligence: They have to be one step ahead of the killer and must be able to piece together every minute detail.
- Flaws: A perfect detective can be quite a drag. Introduce some flaws to your detective like having a troubled past, a nasty disposition, or a crisis of conscience that makes them far more accessible and human than most.
The Suspects: Building a Motive for Everyone
When solving a tough murder mystery, the reader is always challenged on the true identity of the killer by a portrayal of dangerously elaborate suspects. Each suspect should have a reason for encasing the crime, all your job is to do is to unveil their motives gradually.
Questions to consider for each suspect:
- How do these people know the dead?
- What secrets do they keep inside themselves?
- What excuse could they use, which excuse would be a presumably one?
Every suspect must fulfill the role of a plausible killer, and their motives must be intricate enough to regularly raise doubts about them throughout the narrative.
The Killer: Hiding in Plain Sight
A splendid murder thriller does not let the reader go far from the real killer. After killing, the killer is able to look back in time and understand why they did it – there are clues provided earlier in the story but not at that instant.
To create a killer who one can remember:
- Make them realistic: The reasons for making the murder must be reasonable – be it revenge, jealousy, desperation, etc.
- Develop them further: The killer, like any other character in your book, must be multifaceted and full of life. Rather, he might have a facade that seems rather endearing, or he could be someone that the detective trusted at first.
- Plant subtle hints: Good murderers always drop small hints that come into relevance after the crucial moment. Perhaps, it’s an offhand remark on a character’s behavior made early in the site without any significance or a little act which appears trivial and inconsequential but more to it in subsequent stages.
The Climax: Unveiling the Killer
The epilogue in murder mystery writing is perhaps one of the most important. Everything comes together during the final confrontation. This is the confrontation between the investigator and the murderer. All the clues are finally retrieved, and the detective finally has the chance to unfold the truth to the readers.
The Big Reveal
After the readers have come to the climactic point of the murder mystery and the reader feels that the mystery has been solved, the slumbering of the reader is never disturbed because that which the detective in this case has come to establish in light of the solved murder investigation tends to be water under the bridge. The explanation must be baffling but also adduced from sensible reasons.
To make the great revelation:
- Close the circle: Make sure that all the other unrelated clues and resolution of the child and other incidents tie together in a logical progression.
- Make it hurt: If bringing the jaw-dropping twist was easy, general-resolution skill is devilishly hard. Good twist needs to end the whole narrative and force the reader to start from scratch.
- Give an emotional closure: Nothing is more wonderful than bringing the attention of the reader to the questions of morality after the case is solved. It’s unnaturally left ignored once the crime is solved. The best mysteries will not only resolve the crime for the characters involved. It might be that the detective has to face his own ghosts after all. Or the reason behind why the killer killed so many innocent people may resonate with readers.
The Aftermath
And do not hurry with the ending. After resolution has been achieved, occupy yourself with what follows next. How are the characters now that the secret has been revealed? What are the implications of finally solving the crime? These concluding portions can bring closure to the readers and even create an impression among them.
Creating an enthralling murder mystery is not a day’s job, it involves creativity, patience, and close understanding of one’s work. Killing the reader should never be the author’s objective; There’s much more than concern for plot, for it’s the combination of all elements be it suspense, excitement, and tension that keeps the reader on their toes. There are plenty of more things left to learn as far as improving writing style goes or even becoming a successful writer who is able to create the next bestselling novel. Make sure to check our other blogs where additional tips and insights are provided that concern writing and storytelling. Happy writing!
FAQs
1. How long should a murder mystery be?
Murder mysteries can be complete with a cast of characters and extended plot span, unlike short stories. For instance, most full blown murder mysteries are about 70, 000 to 90, 000 words long which is the average of the fiction book. The average length can also be dependent on how the writer wants to craft his or her plot and the involved characters.
2. Do I need to outline my murder mystery before writing?
While this is not something people voluntarily share by the latest mystery writers’ rules, it is advisable while outlining to track all ring-ins and reasons of a character. Outlining helps to eliminate weak and illogical plot structures and character development, as well as eliminate plot frass.
3. How do I create effective red herrings?
Ringers closer to the mystery goal should work and sound encouraging to the investigator but bring forth none of the expected results. When plotting the actions these characters are involved in, remember to consider more how to effectively mislead the reader. The same applies in the other direction; it must mislead both detective’s as well as the reader’s perspective but in a softer way.
4. Can a murder mystery have multiple killers?
Yes, there are even cases of several murder mystery killers or conspirators who are helpers to the plot. Regardless, mind the reader’s understanding, try not to lose them in the course of the story, and present all the reasons why the action is undertaken from the viewpoint of the actors of the drama.
5. Should I plan the twist from the beginning?
In a perfect scenario, yes. Knowing your twist beforehand helps to embed various elements and prepare the audience for the tilt. However, some writers come up with their twist while in the process of writing, which is also fine, provided you go back to the first few pages of your manuscript and modify them to accommodate the twist.
